


Have Faith In The Ones You Love

by FiliKiliThorinForever



Category: The Almighty Johnsons
Genre: Anders is hurting, Dawn is awesome and can fix anything, Father-Son Relationship, Miscommunication, More tags to be added, Russell is hurting, everybody is hurting
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-01-23
Updated: 2016-02-11
Packaged: 2018-05-15 17:18:34
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 7,199
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5793235
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/FiliKiliThorinForever/pseuds/FiliKiliThorinForever
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Inspired by Lakritzwolf's chapter 5 of Two Volumes of one Book.</p><p>What do you do when everything you built up for the last twelve years comes crashing down around your ears because of a twelve year old letter? How do you help someone who refuses to talk to you? And how do you function when all you can worry about is the pain your son is going through?</p><p>Dawn can see Anders is struggling to cope with the worry, and if he and Russell don't make up soon she worries that one of them might wind up getting hurt. Or worse.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Nothing Remains Broken

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Lakritzwolf](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lakritzwolf/gifts).
  * Inspired by [Two Volumes of one Book](https://archiveofourown.org/works/5572585) by [Lakritzwolf](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lakritzwolf/pseuds/Lakritzwolf). 



> So. As mentioned this was inspired by the wonderful chapter 5 of Two Volumes of One Book by Lakritzwolf, who happened to ask me what I thought would happen and I came up with three different versions as to how I thought the next few chapters would go. Me being me the first one was the more plausible one in my book, the other two got progressively worse, so each chapter will be each different version.
> 
> Hope you enjoy! :D And check out the wonderful stories if you haven't already!!

**As much as it breaks my heart I do not own the characters of Almighty Johnsons or the wonderful universe Lakritzwolf has created here!**

 

* * *

  

Dawn watched with a frown as Anders attempted to pack up his work for the afternoon, more often than not dropping a piece of paper or completely missing the pocket in his bag until he’d swear in frustration and she had to take over with soothing words and a gentle push.

Today marked the fourth day she’d stood by and watched this happen, and today was the day she was going to put her foot down and make it stop. Since the fight with Russell she’d been forced to watch the circles under Anders eyes darken, his temper shorten and his attention to his work lessen. The man who was normally so switched on had been replaced by someone easily distracted and she worried that if he didn’t resolve whatever this was with Russell soon he was going to end up hurting himself.

There was a frustrated curse followed by a rather hard slamming of a mug on the glass desk and she pushed off the doorframe with a sigh.

“Leave it Anders,” she told him, gently brushing away his insistent hands and stacking the paperwork neatly before sliding them into his satchel. “You’re exhausted and not thinking straight, I think you need to take the afternoon off.”

“I  _need_  to finish my work,” the blond growled back, hands running through already mussed hair. “I just – I need -”

“You need to take your mind off Russell and work and relax,” she finished for him, nodding to herself when Anders fell into his chair and crossed his arms with a pout. Anders needed something, anything that would take his mind off what was happening, but she was at a loss at what to suggest.

Just then she spotted a newspaper on the desk, and it just so happened to be on the entertainment section advertising movies that were currently showing at the cinemas.

Perfect.

“Right,” she said, putting on her most stern voice and collected Anders wallet and phone off a tray he’d dumped them in earlier before dropping them in his lap when he refused to take them. “You are going to the movies this after – no don’t you argue with me Anders Johnson, you are tired and distracted and a good movie will help take your mind off what’s happening for a couple of hours -”

“I’m not going by myself Dawn that’s just sad -”

“Yes you are, plenty of people do it so stop making excuses.” Still looking unconvinced she placed a hand on his shoulder with an understanding smile. “It doesn’t even have to be a good movie Anders, you just need something to do that you don’t have to think about too much.”

Anders opened and closed his mouth several times, clearly fighting with something before his shoulders sagged and he nodded in defeat.

“Good!” Dawn said brightly, grabbing his hand and hauling him out of his chair. “I’ll drive!”

Anders gave her a strange look. “Um… ok?”

“Just to make sure you don’t go home instead,” she said as though it was the most obvious thing in the world as she collected her purse and keys.

“Don’t you trust me?”

The look she gave him had him rolling his eyes as he opened the door for her. “Ouch, that stings. What are you going to do for the afternoon then? It’s not exactly fair if you keep working.”

“Oh I won’t be,” she said with a fierce look in her eye. “It’s time Russell and I had a talk.”

Love swelled in his chest for the protective woman opposite him. On a good day Dawn would happily correct anyone who made a wrong assumption about any of her family, but do so on a bad day and she was as ferocious as a lioness, with the teeth and claws to match.

It seemed Russell had gotten her bad day.

“Well…” he said with a wry smile, “Odin help him.”

 

* * *

 

Dawn drummed her fingers against the car door as she leaned against it watching the school gate, hawk-like eyes watching for a mop of blond hair that belonged to the student she was after.

A flood of students piled out carting books, talking loudly and in general behaving like the high schooler’s she remembered being around as a teenager. A few minutes after the initial rush a small group of students exited the gate, teenagers she recognised to be friends of Russell’s. And sure enough just behind them said blond trailed.

She watched as one of the girls in the group nudged and said something to her nephew and he looked up startled before starting to head the opposite direction.

“Don’t you even think about it Russell Johnson,” she called loudly, keeping a smirk off her face when his shoulders hunched and he turned slowly before trudging towards her.

She waited until he got close enough before moving away from the door, pulling it open and fixing him with a stare until the younger Johnson sighed and climbed in to the passenger seat. Ensuring he had put his seatbelt on and wasn’t going to do a runner the moment she moved Dawn went around and climbed into the driver’s seat, sticking the key in the ignition and leaving the school.

And for the entire trip, silence reigned in the car.

 

* * *

 

Russell sighed and unlocked the front door, stepping inside before holding it open for his aunt with his eyes fixed firmly on the floor. When she was inside he closed it quietly behind her, shuffling forwards towards the kitchen where he could hear her pottering around.

“You hungry?”

He looked up to find Dawn pulling a plate out of the cupboard, some bread and condiments already on the bench, and a mug with a tea bag waiting for the jug to boil.

“Not really,” he mumbled. It was a lie of course, but he really didn’t want to be having this conversation and he hoped that saying no to the food would make his aunt leave him alone.

It was wishful thinking on his part.

“Don’t even think about lying to me young man. Keep it up and I won’t let you see the girls for the next month.”

That got his attention. He looked up in shock, and seeing the serious look on his aunts face he made his way to the counter and flopped into a bar stool with a huff, glowering at her with his hands shoved in his pocket. Using his younger cousins as blackmail to make him do what she wanted was cruel, even for her, but he knew Dawn was well aware of his love for those little rascals and that’s why she was perfectly content using it.

A plate of food was slid towards him and despite saying he wasn’t hungry he began wolfing it down, his resolve having lasted all of three seconds. When he was done he looked up at Dawn sheepishly and slid the plate away from him, giving her a weak smile in thanks.

“Well I’m glad that’s out of the way,” she told him as she moved to sit beside him, now filled mug in tow. “Now, let’s have ourselves a talk.”

“Do we have too?”

“Yes Russell, we do. Whatever is happening between you and Anders is destroying him and it needs to stop before you ruin your relationship with him permanently.”

The young Johnson rolled his eyes at his aunt’s choice of words. Yeah, he and his dad weren’t talking at the moment but it wasn’t that bad.

Dawn cocked an eyebrow at his grumble. “Yes Russell, it is.”

Oops. He cringed slightly, why did his mouth have to be connected to his brain sometimes? He looked up at her and found Dawn watching him sadly.

“What do you want me to say?” He asked her, annoyance at her look lacing his tone. “Do you expect me to spill all my secrets to you?”

“No, I expect you to sit there and listen,” Dawn replied. “I don’t know what was in that letter and I don’t want to know, not if it’s something you’re uncomfortable with sharing. But I expect you to listen to what I have to say, _without_  interrupting, and hear your father’s side of the story.”

“You’re not my mother,” he said petulantly.

“No,” Dawn agreed with a shake of her head, “and thank god for that. Because if I was then you wouldn’t have had Anders, and seeing as you are the best thing that’s ever happened to that man I wouldn’t want to take that away from him.”

He stayed silent, not sure how to respond.

Thankfully Dawn didn’t seem to want an answer. “I’m going to be honest, finding out about you turned his world upside down. Before he went to Wellington to meet you he was a ladies man; picking up any woman he found attractive, dabbling in drugs and his only friend was alcohol. He was determined to forever be a bachelor.”

“Until the letter came.”

“Until the letter came,” she agreed. “To be honest our first thought was it was someone filing a lawsuit against him. He was terrified, he couldn’t stop shaking and in the end I had to open it he was that nervous. It wasn’t something I think he ever expected to happen, but with the way he went through women it was bound to occur at some point.”

Russell rolled his eyes. “Is that supposed to make me feel better?” he asked, “because it doesn’t.”

“Ok let’s forget about that for a second then shall we? When Anders went to Wellington he went with the sole intention of seeing April, finding out what she wanted and paying child support. That was it. The Anders Johnson you met when you were five is someone I’d  _never_  have trusted with any child, including his own. But when he got there and he met you… I have never seen him look that determined. About anything.” She took a sip of her cooling tea, memories flashing before her eyes of the haunted little boy Anders had sent them a photo of. “He saw you Russell and he was reminded of himself, the hell he’d been put through by his abusive father and unloving mother and he decided then and there you would never go through that, that he would do whatever he could to make you happy.”

Russell looked at his aunt uncertainly. “But,” he stammered, fingers toying with the hem of his jumper, “the letter…”

“Anders didn’t get the letter Russ, not like April wanted him too. It was meant to be given to him before she died but it got lost in the paperwork somehow. The first time he saw it was when he got to Wellington. By then it was too late.”

“How do you know all this?” he asked in a small voice, thoughts bouncing around his head and making it hard to understand them. “How do you know how he felt?”

“Who do you think he confided too?” Dawn gave back wryly. “It’s not like he has many friends. Look Russ, I don’t know what was in the letter or what April wrote about Anders but I do know this. He loves you, you are his son and he would do  _anything_  for you. And you know what? I think if he had found out about you when she was alive and had seen the way they had been treating you he would have tried to take you from them, and he would never have given up until the courts gave him full custody.”

Wiping his eyes on the back of his sleeve Russell swallowed thickly. “I- the letter… what have I _done?_ ”

Dawn wrapped an arm around her nephew’s shoulder in a side hug, pressing a kiss to the side of his head. “It’s ok Russ, you can fix this; nothing stays broken forever.”

 

The next few hours passed in a blur. Russell fetched the letter from his room and handed it to Dawn to read, and together they began discussing the feelings that had been triggered by his mother’s words before moving onto other things, anything to pass the time until Anders came home and he and Russ could talk.

It had just turned six when Dawn’s phone rang, and she dug it out of her purse.

 “Hello Anders,” she greeted cheerfully as she put the cookies they had just baked onto a cooling rack. “What’s up? Did you enjoy the movie?”

_“Movie was fine Dawn but I have a slight problem.”_

“Oh?”

There was a dry chuckle.  _“Yup, namely you drove me here, and then went home.”_

“And…?”

_“Annnnd… I have no car to get home. You’ve kind of stranded me here Dawnsie.”_

“Shit! Sorry Anders hang on!” she hung up and leapt out of her chair, hurrying to collect her purse and keys. “I’ll be there soon!” Aside from the fact Anders detested buses they were horribly unreliable and he had to transfer between several of the blasted things to get back to work from where he was. The one time she’d decided to bus to prove to Anders there was nothing wrong with public transport it had taken her an hour to do what was normally a fifteen minute trip by car.

Even she refused to bus in future.

Purse and keys collected she dropped a kiss to her nephew’s forehead, squeezing his shoulder gently. “Remember Russ, he loves you, and Anders would do anything to make you happy.”

Russell watched with tears quickly forming in his eyes as she hurried out the door.

 

* * *

 

Placing the car in park Anders leaned his forehead against the steering wheel and heaved a sigh.

So much for a relaxing afternoon.

The movie had been a good idea on Dawn’s part, as much as he was reluctant to admit it. Watching the new Star Wars movie was something he’d had on the list to see for a while and after preparing himself with an ice-cream and a bag of caramel popcorn, a rare treat he allowed himself but he reckoned he deserved it, he settled in to watch.

The movie didn’t distract him.

It did, but only slightly. His mind would go from watching what was in front of him to dredging up memories from the first year he had Russell and the way the little boy had looked as though he carried the weight of the world on his shoulders.

By the time the lights came up he could honestly say had no idea what the movie was about, and with a resigned sigh he heaved himself out of his seat and trudged out of the theatre, pulling his phone out of his pocket to call Dawn and ask her to collect him seeing as she had so kindly left him without a car.

Of course, by the time he got to his car it was peak hour on the motorway, and unfortunately with some poor bastard breaking down in the middle lane and the roadworks taking place he ended up stuck in traffic for nearly two hours.

Suffice to say being stuck by himself was the worst thing that could have happened, because his nerves were shot and he was more stressed than he had been that morning by the time he got to his neighbourhood. Hoping to calm down slightly he went to the local Indian restaurant, only really able to eat half of his butter chicken before giving up and heading home, where he had to take a deep breath before stepping out of the car and heading for the door.

He needed to go to bed, try and sleep and then hope to come up with a solution to talk to Russell. Tonight wasn’t going to happen, but he needed to get through to his son and to do so meant he needed a clear head.

After toeing off his shoes he headed straight for the stairs, not bothering to look around for any signs of his son. With exhaustion in every step he made his way up the stairs towards his bathroom to have a quick shower, only pausing briefly to shut the bedroom door behind him quietly.

 

* * *

 

Russell sunk back into his chair and bit his lip as he watched his dad walk past, heart aching at the exhaustion and defeat that seemed to radiate off him.

He’d done that. He, Russell Johnson, had broken his father.

Swiping a hand across his eyes he set about cleaning up the kitchen, storing the cookies in a container and on a whim put together lunch for the pair of them for the next day, hoping the little gesture might show Anders how much he did care.

Once everything was cleaned up and put away he made his way to his room, trying to listen for any movement in his dads bedroom but considering the lights were off he suspected he was either in the bathroom or already in bed. Knowing he wouldn’t get a chance to apologise tonight Russell decided an early night might be a good idea.

 

He couldn’t sleep.

After tossing and turning so many times Russell sat up with a groan. Images of his dad’s tired face, of his expression that told him he was hurting… it was all too much for him. He’d broken his father and done god knows what damage to their relationship. He only hoped Anders would forgive him for what he’d done; forgive him for treating him that way when none of it was his fault.

How he wished he was a kid again. Where his biggest worries were the length of his hair and learning to read, where Anders would help him with all the big words in his Norse mythology book until he had them down to pat. But that time was long gone and now it was up to him to take the first step in asking for forgiveness.

He grabbed a thick blanket off his bed and chucked some pyjama pants on over his boxers before padding silently from his room. Blanket in tow he tiptoed to Anders room, knocking on the door softly and when there was no answer he turned the handle, pushing it open silently and slunk inside.

It was a childish move he knew, and it had been years since he’d snuck into his father’s bed, but he needed the comfort, and perhaps, even while Anders slept, he needed it too.

Watching for any movement and finding none, Russell climbed onto the empty spot on the bed, pulling his blanket over himself and snuggled down, fingers creeping forward until he could grip the back of Anders sleep shirt loosely.

“I’m so sorry dad,” he whispered tearfully to the sleeping form. “I-I didn’t mean to hurt you like that. I was just confused and hurt a-and… I should never have assumed you’d do that, but I just…” he breathed out shakily, wiping away the tears that stung his eyes. “I shouldn’t have doubted you and I’m so sorry I did.”

 

* * *

 

Anders had just started to drift off when a quiet knock to his door startled him awake. He lay there, trying to steady his breathing as the door was opened and Russell crept into his room. Thankful he was lying on his side where Russell couldn’t see his face he listened as his son padded to the other side of the bed and climbed on, lithe like with minimal disturbance.

It had been a long time since Russ had done anything like it, so the fact that he was doing so now when they weren’t exactly on the best of terms had him more than perplexed.

Just when he thought Russell was just going to lay there a slight tug at his shirt had him freezing completely, and his heart began to race when he realised his son was holding onto him.

“I’m so sorry dad, I-I didn’t mean to hurt you like that. I was just confused and hurt a-and… I should never have assumed you’d do that, but I just…” there was a wet sniffle and Anders sagged slightly at the sound. “I shouldn’t have doubted you and I’m so sorry I did.”

It seemed Dawn had gotten through to him after all.

He opened his eyes and rolled over, lip quirking slightly when Russell jerked back in surprise.

“Come here Russ,” he murmured, opening his arms which were, after a moment filled with his son. “It’s ok, it’s ok.”

Russell shook his head, his shoulders shaking with barely repressed sobs. “But it’s not dad, it’s _not._ I ruined _everything_ …”

“Nothing is broken forever,” he whispered, kissing the top of his sons head and running a soothing hand up and down his back. “Come on, let’s get some sleep and we can talk in the morning alright?”

He waited patiently until Russell managed to calm himself down enough to draw away, and even then the younger man kept a hand on his wrist, as though he were afraid of losing the comfort his father provided.

“Night Russ,” he said, giving Russell’s hand currently on his arm a gentle squeeze.

“Night,” the teen replied. “And dad?”

“Yeah?”

“Love you.”

Anders smiled, leaning over to press a kiss to his son’s head.

“Love you too kiddo.”


	2. In The Space Of A Minute Your Life Can Change

**A/N: This was meant to be up days ago but I got a bit distracted with work and trying to catch some wild kittens round my place, of which I've just caught my second one, so it kinda fell to the wayside. This is my second version of chapter 5, a little bit angstier than the first, and I think not as bad as the third chapter. I hope this does come across as angsty, so let me know what you think :)**

**Thanks again to Lakritzwolf for the amazing story! :D**

 

* * *

  

Anders fell into his car just after nine pm, four hours after he was supposed to have finished work. The stress he was dealing with because of Russell had left him unable to focus, and by the time he had completed the preliminary sketches that were due tomorrow for a very picky client he’d found that the night had well and truly fallen.

Unfortunately this meant another missed opportunity for talking to his son, but considering he had surpassed being bone weary and was downright exhausted perhaps it was for the best. Unsuccessfully stifling a yawn he stabbed the key in the general area of the ignition, and it wasn’t until the seventh or eighth attempt that he actually bothered to lean over and put the key where it was meant to be.

“Come on Anders,” he scolded himself, rubbing a hand over his tired eyes, “get your shit together.” He heaved a deep sigh and started the engine, pulling out of his parking space and headed down the street as he valiantly tried to keep his mind alert and eyes open until he reached home.

 

He never saw it coming.

He’d been sitting at the lights, waiting for them to turn green and he could feel the tiredness lingering on the edge of his mind. In order to combat it he’d turned the stereo up, determined to blast his ear drums enough to keep him awake until he arrived home. It was obvious it was a bad idea; the number of safe driving ads he’d heard and helped create all pointed to that fact, but he refused to sleep in the back seat of his car like a teenager and so it really was his only option.

That’s why when the light turned green and he started forward, not bothering to check each way like he normally did that he had a split second to be surprised by the bright lights in his driver’s window before his car was sent flying across the road into a nearby traffic light, the car practically wrapping itself around the pole from the force with which it had been hit.

The last thought to cross his mind before he passed out was that he hoped Russell would be okay without him.

 

* * *

 

_“Hey this is Russ, I can’t come to the phone right now so leave a message and I’ll get back to ya.”_

“Dammit Russ!” Dawn threw her phone onto the passenger seat, running shaking fingers through her hair as she drove as quickly as she could to Anders house to look for the teenager.

She had been in the process of putting the girls down for the evening when her phone had wrung, pulling her away from the story she was currently reading to look at the caller ID. She wasn’t sure why, but the moment she spotted the private number across the top of her screen she felt her stomach drop. She’d woken up and had a bad feeling all day; intuition telling her that something was going to go wrong, and despite Anders being stressed about the situation at home everything had remained normal.

That was until the call.

She’d called for Ty who was in the kitchen preparing the girls lunches for the next day before she answered the phone, asking him to finish the story as she made her way to the living room where she wouldn’t be overheard.

The news had left her reeling, struggling to breathe against the panic and tears that were threatening to consume her.

_Anders._

_Car accident._

_Serious injuries._

_Not yet woken._

_Surgery._

_Need to get to the hospital immediately._

Those were about the only words she’d been able to process before the lady from the hospital had hung up, reiterating the need for her to get there as soon as possible should any big decisions need to be made.

Because despite all the years that had passed since the Gods had returned to Asgard and Anders relationship with his brothers and grandfather had improved, Dawn had always remained his proxy, the blond stating he trusted her with the big decisions and his life more than anyone else.

After that it had been a frantic search for her keys and bag, a last minute thought as she was pulling her shoes on had her hurrying to her bedroom for a jacket as she knew how cold hospitals could get and because she’d likely be there all night she wanted to be comfortable.

It was as she was coming out of their room that Ty had found her, asking what had happened that had her getting ready to leave in a hurry.

The news had left her husband standing there horrified, almost ready to faint if the way his skin went pale was anything to judge by, but sadly she had no time to comfort him. After instructing him to call his brothers to let them know what was happening, as well as arranging a plan for who would go to the hospital she raced out the door, finding a certain young Johnson her first priority.

 

Picking up her phone from where she tossed it on the seat she decided to try her nephew’s phone again, having already lost count of the number of times she’d tried calling him since she had found out Anders was in the hospital. But it came as little surprise when there was still no answer.

“For God’s sake Russ!” She snapped as she got his voicemail, deciding to give up and just confront him when she got to the house.

She pulled into the driveway not ten minutes later, and barely remembered to park the vehicle before she was throwing herself out of the car and hurrying up the steps, struggling to get the key in the lock before she let herself in the house.

“Russ?” She called, closing the door behind her as she switched on the hall light and moved further inside. “Russell Johnson you answer me this minute young man!”

There was no reply.

She remembered Anders complaining a few days ago about how Russell, in his quest to ignore his father had started wearing headphones in his room with his music blasting and figured that might be why he couldn’t hear her now. Not bothering to take her shoes off she hurried up the stairs to her nephew’s room and was about to start hammering on the door when she realised there was no light shining from underneath.

“Russ?” She opened the door and flicked the light on, only to find the room empty. Not only was Russell not answering his phone, but he wasn't even home. She cursed under her breath, wondering how she was supposed to find her nephew when she heard the front door open.

“Aunty Dawn?”

Turning on her heel she left the room and hurried down the stairs where Russ was taking off his shoes.

“What are you doing here?” The teen asked with a frown on his face, “shouldn’t you be-”

“Where the hell have you been?!” She interrupted angrily. “I have been calling and calling and you thought it was funny to just ignore every single one?!”

“What are you-”

“Are you so pissed off with your father over some stupid letter that you’d ignore _me_ when I’m trying to get a hold of you-”

“I don’t-”

“Because let me tell you Russell Johnson, your father loves you more than anything and the fact that you’d ignore your family, when he’s lying in a hospital bed and needing you-”

“WHAT?!”

Dawn watched as all colour drained from Russ’s face to the point he had to use the wall to support himself. She hurried forward, pulling his arm over her shoulder and helping him to the living room where he collapsed onto the couch.

“What do you mean dads in hospital?” the blond rasped, hands beginning to shake and eyes misting with tears.

Dawn crouched in front of him, taking his hands in hers in silent support. “He was in an accident Russ. I’m not sure how it happened but he’s in a pretty serious way and they’ve asked me to get there as soon as possible, but I couldn’t go there knowing you hadn’t been told.”

Terrified blue eyes looked up at her, the colour enhanced by the tears that were now beginning to show themselves.

“Will he be ok?”

The question was asked so softly, so fearfully, that Dawn was immediately reminded of the shy little boy who had been pushed into their lives all those years ago.

The thought made her heart break.

“I honestly don’t know Russ,” she admitted quietly, her heart aching at the whimper that escaped him, “but if I know Anders, which I do better than most, then I know there’s no way in hell he’ll give up and leave you without a fight.”

Russ choked on a sob and threw his arms around her, hanging on for dear life as he cried his heart out. All the tension that had lingered in the house between him and Anders had clearly left him emotionally fragile, and now, being faced with the very real reality of losing his father was clearly too much for him to handle.

Dawn waited patiently, running her hand up and down her nephew’s back whilst making shushing noises until he calmed down enough to draw away with an embarrassed, and rather wet, chuckle.

“Sorry,” he sniffled, wiping his eyes and nose hastily as he tried to get himself under control, “I didn’t mean to ruin your shirt.”

“Don’t worry about it,” she told him with a smile. “I need you to go get some of your dads stuff packed, I have no doubt he’ll be mortified when he realises he’s in one of those hospital gowns so he’ll be most thankful for having his own clothes on hand. As soon as that’s done we’ll head over ok?”

Russell nodded, taking a deep shaky breath before standing and hurrying up the stairs. Waiting until her nephew had disappeared from sight Dawn turned and headed for the kitchen, quickly going through the cupboards in search of food she’d be able to take for Russ to eat. She had no doubt the younger blond would refuse to leave his father’s side until he was in the clear, not even for food so she figured she’d make it easier for him to stay beside him.

Just as she was packing the last of the fruit into the food bag she’d found Russell appeared in the doorway, a bag clutched in each hand. It seemed he’d been thinking along the same lines as she had. Ignoring the fresh tears in the blue eyes out of a respect of privacy she grabbed the food and her keys, nudging her nephew towards the front door. “Alright, let’s go see your father.”

 

* * *

 

Russ sat in the passenger seat lost in his thoughts, guilt and anger battling dangerously inside of him. He felt guilty because if anything happened to his father, who was currently lying in a hospital bed, Anders could very well die with everything left unresolved between them. Every cruel word, every snub, the destruction of their swear jar, each and every one of those would remain hanging in the air, following him like a cloud of wasps constantly waiting to strike and remind him of how much he had hurt the one person who would always love him unconditionally.

And that in turn led to the anger. Not anger at Anders, no he’d let that go several days before, but rather anger at himself for shunning his father every time he tried to speak to him because he was so lost in his own head. If Anders died thinking he hated him... That was on his shoulders.

He wouldn’t be able to live with himself if that happened.

They were approaching the hospital quickly thanks to the lack of traffic at that time of night, but the absence of distractions meant his brain was working on overdrive, almost consuming him with pictures and emotions he really didn’t want to feel right now. Or ever, if he was honest.

One of those memories was of him just now going through his dad’s cupboard to prepare an overnight bag and finding Anders favourite shirt that he’d had Dawn help him design and get printed when he was seven years old for Christmas with the words ‘World’s Best Knight and Dad’ on the front, and the sight of it had left him a silent sobbing mess in the middle of the bedroom floor, the faded material pressed to his face so he could breathe in the smell of the most important person in his life.

It killed him that it took the potential of losing his dad to realise that.

He’d tucked the shirt into his own bag to take with him; knowing he’d likely need the comfort if Anders couldn’t provide it himself.

“We’re here Russ.”

He blinked and unclipped his belt before hopping out of the car, grabbing the two bags from the backseat before following Dawn towards the entrance.

It was blessedly quiet in the main lobby, so it didn’t take long until they were being instructed to head up to the fifth floor where Anders doctor and several other Johnson family members were currently located. After thanking the nurse they made their way to the elevators and in no time at all were being greeted by Ty, Mike, Axl and Olaf.

“What are you doing here?” Dawn asked her husband as she was pulled into a hug. “Who’s with the girls?”

“That would be Hannah,” Axl told her as he pulled his nephew into a side hug. “We hadn’t quite put the kids down so figured it’d be easier if she took them to your place to watch everyone.”

Russ watched the exchange indifferently before he turned to Mike.

Uncle Mike always had the answers, no matter what the question was.

“Is dad ok?”

Mike sighed and pulled him into a hug, nodding to Olaf who quickly hurried off. “I honestly don’t know Russ,” he told his nephew truthfully, “the doctor’s haven’t been able to tell us anything aside from the fact he’s in surgery because his proxy wasn’t here.”

Dawn looked at her brother in-law in horror. “Christ I’m so sorry Mike!” she apologised fretfully, “if I had known I would have come straight here but Russ-”

Mike shook his head with an understanding smile. “Don’t worry Dawn,” he soothed, “Russ needs to be here, more than any of us. The doc didn’t say anything about needing a signature so I think it’s safe to say he’ll be ok.”

Before Russ or Dawn could reply Olaf arrived with a doctor in tow, said doctor immediately introducing himself to the newcomers.

“My name is Doctor Wyatt, I’ll be overseeing Mr Johnson's case while he’s here. Am I correct in saying one of you is his medical proxy?”

Dawn offered her hand to the young doctor who shook it warmly. “That would be me, Dawn, Anders assistant and sister in-law, and this here is his son Russell.”

Wyatt shook both their hands and motioned for the family to sit down, grabbing a chair from nearby and dragging it over to them. “Now I’m not technically supposed to tell you this, but from what we’ve been told the accident wasn’t your father’s fault.” This was said directly to Russell who seemed to slump into his chair in relief at the news. “A boy racer ran a red light and ploughed into him whilst your father was going through the intersection. The offending party has been treated for minor wounds and has since been placed into custody.”

The remaining Johnsons let out a sigh of relief, at the very least the idiot who did this was off the road and unable to hurt anyone else in the near future.

“Mr Johnson has sustained several wounds,” Wyatt continued “some of which are quite serious so he was rushed to surgery immediately upon arrival. He has a ruptured spleen, a perforated lung as well as a concussion that we’ll be monitoring over the next few weeks. His entire right side sustained a serious blow from the impact resulting in four broken ribs, a broken wrist, dislocated hip, fractured femur and broken tibia. In fact he was extremely lucky not to have sustained any spinal injuries or damage to his neck.” He paused when he saw how pale they had all become, and he did his best to give them a reassuring smile. “Overall, Anders going to be in a lot of pain when he wakes. We weren’t able to put him into an induced coma due to the concussion with the chance he might not wake because of it, so he’s currently on strong anaesthetics and we’ll be monitoring him and delivering pain medication as needed. But, he’s alive, and regardless as to how long as his recovery takes he _will_ be fine. If he co-operates,” he added as an afterthought.

That got a small chuckle out of the group, the tension having finally been broken at the news Anders would pull through in one piece.

“We’ve had a private room set up for him when he’s out of surgery, so if you’d prefer I can take you there where you can wait in slightly more comfortable lodgings until he’s brought in?”

Dawn leaned forwards and squeezed the doctor’s hand gratefully. “That would be wonderful. Is it alright if we all wait for him?”

“Absolutely. I’ll arrange some bedding and blankets for you to make yourselves comfortable until he arrives.”

 

* * *

 

It was an agonizing wait.

Despite the time of night and the exhaustion that had settled over him Russell couldn’t sleep, instead tossing and turning during the hours his dad remained in surgery. There were no updates to be had, but, as Mike reminded them, no news was good news and so that must’ve meant the surgery was going well.

Eventually two am rolled around and so, surprisingly, did Michele.

The brunet nurse looked exhausted, and greeted them all with a weary smile before making her way over to her partner, allowing Mike to pull her into his lap.

Mike pressed a kiss to her head. “What are you doing here?” He asked quietly in case anyone was still asleep. “I thought you went home hours ago?”

“I was about to clock out,” Michele sighed, slumping against Mike and scrubbing a hand across her eyes. “I saw them bring Anders in and told them I wasn’t going anywhere until I knew he was okay. I only just saw the messages you left me.” The last comment was said almost apologetically, something that Dawn, who hadn’t been sleeping, quickly rectified.

“Don’t apologise Michele, you were there for Anders when the rest of us couldn’t be,” she glanced towards Russell who was lying on a bed on his side watching them with sad eyes. “It means a lot, so thank you.”

Michele nodded with an embarrassed half smile, and was about to settle against Mike more comfortably when she sat bolt upright. “Oh! I forgot to say, Anders surgery was a success, and he should be wheeled here any minute. They finished up about an hour ago and wanted to run some final tests before wheeling him in here for post-op.”

Everyone had woken by that point, and so there was a collective sigh heard from the room.

Anders was going to be okay.

 

In no time at all Anders stretcher was pushed through the doors, and the Johnson’s shifted to the edge of the room as he was wheeled into place and hooked up to the various machines and monitors that would be keeping an eye on him.

Immediately Russell moved to the left hand side of the bed, the side that had suffered the least amount of damage and took his father’s hand carefully in his, eyes watering at the sight of the numerous bandages covering the smaller body.

“‘m so sorry dad,” he whispered quietly, using his free hand to stroke the bandaged forehead carefully. “I was so trapped in my head that I lost my way, and I hurt you badly in the process. I _need_ you in my life, I just… I can’t lose you, not now, not ever.” Russell leaned forwards, placing his forehead against Anders temple gently. “Please dad,” he begged hoarsely, “please don’t leave me.”

The older Johnson’s watched with tears in their eyes, and after a quick check with Michele they helped move Anders across enough so that Russell could curl up beside his father for comfort. Russell had grabbed something out of his bag before climbing onto the bed, and it was only as Dawn went to switch out the lights that she saw what it was, and the sight of it immediately brought tears to her eyes.

Russell, curled up next to Anders with one hand holding his, and a green alligator tucked safely between them to watch over them while they slept.


End file.
